UN envoy expresses alarm and urges restraint on all sides amid clashes between security forces, Civilians have reportedly been among the hundreds killed in violence in Syria, as government forces surge to the country’s northwest to respond to fighters loyal to the ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. The situation represents the greatest challenge yet to interim … Read more
Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria since former President Bashar al-Assad was toppled in December. Israel has carried out air strikes near Syria’s Mediterranean port city of Tartous, Syrian state media has reported. An Israeli army statement on Monday said that its forces “struck a military site where weapons belonging to the … Read more
Aleppo, Syria – Abu Ahmad flashes his phone’s torch onto an explosive he found in the basement of a building that used to be a regime military outpost housing soldiers, tanks and ammunition during the Syrian war. Now Abu Ahmad commands a base for the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, in the building. The … Read more
Streets strewn with rubble and piles of ruins where their homes once stood. This is what displaced residents are confronted with upon returning to their town of Tal Rifaat in northern Syria, a crucial battleground in the conflict between Syrian Kurdish fighters and Turkish armed groups. During Syria’s war, Tal Rifaat became part of the … Read more
Soon after Islamist rebels overthrew the authoritarian president of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, a hashtag gathered steam on Egyptian social media: “It’s your turn, dictator.” The message for President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt was unmistakable. But he hardly needed the warning. Since the ouster of Syria’s longtime dictator on Dec. 8, Egyptian leaders have watched … Read more
Today on The Stream: We ask Syrians what they think the future holds following the fall of the Assad regime. It’s been six weeks since rebels captured the capital Damascus and Bashar al-Assad left the country. We turn to the voices of those who’ve lived through the 13-year conflict and ask what a free Syria looks like. Presenter: Anelise Borges Guests:Robin … Read more
Damascus launches a diplomatic outreach to push for an end to restrictions. The United Nations says seven out of 10 Syrians require humanitarian assistance after 13 years of war. And an estimated $500bn is needed to rebuild their country. Syria’s new administration has engaged in diplomacy in the past two weeks to persuade Western powers … Read more
Former Syrian detainee Bassam Ezzedine is on a mission to help prisoners of the fallen regime to find their families. Bassam Ezzedine knows all too well about the cruelty of Syria’s ousted government. After spending time in detention and seeing members of his family disappear, he fled the country as a refugee. But after the … Read more
The German and French foreign ministers have met Syria’s de facto leader in Damascus. The European officials conveyed a message that the lifting of sanctions on Syria would depend on how the country’s political future develops. So what do both sides want from each other – and what divides them? Presenter: Neave Barker Guests: Haid … Read more
War-torn country reaches out for much-needed investment, as Saudi Arabia also set to play a big role in reconstruction. Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani has announced he will visit Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, having just made his first official foreign trip to Saudi Arabia earlier this week. The top diplomat in … Read more